The Physics of Astrophysics Volume II: Gas Dynamics

Presented in two volumes, The Physics of Astrophysics is ideally suited for a year-long astrophysics course for university seniors and first-year graduate students. This second volume deals with the interactions of matter and radiation, and electromagnetic fields of macroscopic scale in both the strongly collisional and collisionless regimes. It covers such fields as single-fluid theory, including radiative processes; waves, shocks, and fronts; magnetohydrodynamics and plasma physics; as well as their applications to such topics as self-gravitating spherical masses, accretion disks, spiral density waves, star formation, and dynamo theory. Over two hundred photos, line drawings, and tables amplify the major points of the text.